Swiss Pick King Of ‘Schwingen’ Wrestling, Rock-Tossing Part Of The All-Male Competition

Forget banks, chocolate and watches.

The “real” Switzerland is a mountain valley meadow full of burly wrestlers, boulder-throwers, yodelers, Alp-horn blowers and folk dancers.

The national Schwingerfest ended Sunday when a 22-year-old butcher, Thomas Sutter, was crowned Switzerland’s “king” and given a prize bull for pinning down his opponent in a ring of sawdust.

He then did what all the winners must do - help the loser up and brush the sawdust off his back. And like all the winners, he has to write a thank-you note for his prize within a week.

“It’s a unique occasion,” said Peter Kaderli, head of a 20-man yodeling group at the two-day championship, which takes place every three years.

“It makes me feel Swiss,” he said, in comments widely echoed throughout the boisterous, almost entirely male crowd of 80,000, fortified by mountains of sausages and lakes of beer.

Schwingen - literally, “to swing” in German - isn’t just a national sport. Dating back about 1,000 years, it provides an insight into the culture of this fiercely independent Alpine nation.

The sport was temporarily banned during the 16th and 17th centuries as authorities found it undignified. It reemerged in the early 1800s as a symbol of national strength and identity against Napoleon’s Europe.

The rules are simple and strict. Competitors have to keep one hand on the khaki shorts of the opponent while trying to pin all or part of the back or shoulders down in the ring of sawdust.

Steinstossen, another integral part of the festival in which men toss a boulder weighing 182 pounds, also has its roots in tradition. Swiss farmers used to chuck huge rocks that fell from glaciers at intruders.

Both sports remain symbols of national independence to this day.

Comments by spectators underlined why the Swiss electorate - especially the German-speaking majority - regularly votes down any government plans to strengthen ties with the rest of Europe or any international bodies.

“Self-confidence in our own strength is more necessary than ever for our country,” declared Christoph Blocher, whose company was the festival’s main sponsor. His words were met with resounding cheers.

Sports Minister Ruth Dreifuss, however, was jeered when she dared to suggest that Switzerland should go along with the team spirit and strike up closer links with Europe.

The fact that Dreifuss was the first woman ever to speak at a Schwingerfest didn’t help her cause either. Schwingen is strictly for men.

“I’m just here because my husband’s taking part,” said Edith Haemmerli, whose 41-year-old husband was taking part in his seventh festival. Hers was one of the few female faces in the crowd.

Although Chur is where the famous Glacier Express begins, few foreigners venture to the fest. There were 11 “exotics” among the 292 contestants, including a Vatican guard and three Americans. All had Swiss origins.

“I started when I was 5,” said Ady Ming, a 21-year-old cowboy from Sacramento, Calif., whose Swiss grandfather passed the love of schwingen on to the whole family. An older cousin was also taking part.

Compared to other sports, the financial rewards are meager. The bull Sutter won was worth $8,700.

But his prestige during his threeyear reign is huge.

“For hundreds of years, our state has had no monarch,” said Blocher. “This is the only king we will recognize - he who wins in the ring.”